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Travel they say broadens the mind and for vacationers is intended to provide relief from normal events at home as well as of course enjoyment. What strange event did famed British novelist Charles Dickens witness in Rome on March 8, 1845, while on holiday in Italy?

Answer: He saw a criminal executed by guillotine for robbing and murdering a Bavarian countess who was travelling as a pilgrim to Rome. Dickens wrote of the large crowd who witnessed the grisly scene: ‘Nobody cared, or was at all affected. There was no manifestation of disgust, or pity, or indignation, or sorrow.’

Source: Pictures from Italy by Charles Dickens

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1908 – King Carlos I of Portugal and his heir, Prince Luis Filipe are assassinated by Republican sympathizers in Lisbon.

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A short, sharp hit of history in video format. Acclaimed Irish playwright and novelist Oscar Wilde was the toast of London society in the 1890s until things came decidedly unstuck through an association with a young British aristocrat, Lord Alfred Douglas, known as ‘Bosie’.

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I was born in Huanggang, China, in 1908.
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HistoryWow’s Highlighted Historical Quotation

“In Russia a man is a called reactionary if he objects to having his property stolen and his wife and children murdered.”

Winston Churchill (1874-1965), British statesman

Source: The Wicket Wit of Winston Churchill by Dominique Enright

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HistoryWow’s Featured Historical Figure of Note

Marcus Porcius Cato (234-149BCE)

Roman statesman, soldier and writer of virtue, simplicity and wisdom. He condemned the luxury of his time and was nicknamed “the censor”. He became Consul in 195BCE, took part in the defeat of Hannibal at Zama, held command in Sardinia and Spain, and in 191 BCE assisted the Greeks in overthrowing Antiochus III at Thermopolyae.

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